2009 Thunderbird Rally in Review

The Okanagan and environs became the partly sunny playground for the biggest TSD rally of the season this past weekend, where almost fifty rally cars took on the snow, ice and bare gravel roads in pursuit of the 38th Thunderbird title.

Our Thunderbird Rally adventure began in the ranchlands outside of Merritt, sailing through the sweeping corners of the Minnie Lake regularity.  I’m pretty sure this reg has been cancelled in years past because of flooding, but this year we just sailed over huge glass ice puddles that covered many spots on the long straights, maintaining our speed and line effortlessly.  Apparently the ice broke and the conditions deteriorated as the rally progressed, resulting in front end damage and a very early retirement for the 1967 Volo Eis Munky lead team.  The second Eis Munky paper class entry was reported off on the same reg, eliminating the team from contention.

The hairpin checkpoint we were assigned on Sunday was the most eventful of the rally, as almost half the field ran into some sort of trouble negotiating the steep, acute L turn.  

With provisional scores posted, the 1969 Saab of driver Satch Carlson and codriver Russ Kraushaar was in the top position, repeating their 2007 victory.

Link to Sirius RT event photos HERE.

Link to Eis Munky Brian’s photos HERE.

Link to event results HERE.

Hairpin video to follow….

Thunderbird Rally Goes High Tech with Sirius Team Checkpointers!

The Sirius WRX Wagon will be traveling the back roads of BC this weekend as part of the Thunderbird TSD Rally.  Over forty teams from the Prairies to the Pacific Northwest, including seasoned stage rally veterans and a herd of newbies in shiny Subarus, will be competing for the Thunderbird Title.  

Without a dedicated TSD rally budget for 2009, Jennifer and August are volunteering for the weekend, and looking forward to some serious winter driving and Subaru rescuing.  Jennifer will be trying out the PBRT twitter rally setup, sending mobile updates from the road, and the Sirius team’s location will be available via August’s Spot tracker @ whereisaugust.com.  Check the Twitter link in the side column of the Sirius team site for twitter updates.

The Eis Munky Rally Team will be attempting to defend its team title from last year, with founding members Gil Stuart and Chris Peake leading the team in Gil’s historic class 1967 Volvo 123GT.  The 2009 Eis Munky Team continues its tradition of including a paper class entry  with Washingston’s Steven Kang and Greg Hightower in their 98 Subaru Outback Sport.  The third Eis Munky team will be an unlimited class 2000 Subaru Impreza piloted by veteran rally fans and organizers Max Vaysburg and Tony Latham. 

GO EIS MUNKY RT!!

2009 Thunderbird Rally Home

Eis Munkys Take Savoia Aero Team Prize at TBird 2008

This year’s Thunderbird rally was a classic snow event. Over forty cars took to the backroads between Merritt and Kamloops, and although many ended up in snowbanks multiple times during the rally, at the end of the event there were only 2 DNFs. The Eis Munky Rally Team this year had both new and returning members, and took the overall team prize with three class wins. Congrats to Historic winners (and captain) Gil and Chris, Paper winners Alan and Emma, and to new Eis Munkys and Novice winners Karl and Shane.

Sirius team member Josh drove his Alcan Forester and won the Calculator class. Josh will be writing for the website during Alcan, so that the Sirius team will have both cars represented in the daily updates.

While Jennifer and Josh were at Thunderbird, Gord and the Rocket Rally crew started their 2008 rally season with a 3rd place overall at the Rallye Perce-Neige in Manawaki QC. Everyone is back home now, and the last minute preparations are under way. The Sirius Rally Team is looking forward to a cold, snowy and eventful Winter Alcan Rally – only 5 days away.

Link to Thunderbird 2008 results HERE.
Click HERE for TBird photos from Sirius Rally.

Four Decades of Winners Compete at Thunderbird Rally

With tonnes of snow and an exciting entry field, the 2008 Thunderbird TSD Rally is sure to be an epic ride. The rally will feature snowy backroads between Merritt and Kamloops BC; the ample snowfall this season has created snowbanks big enough to keep cars on course. Thunderbird is the largest TSD Rally in BC, and draws teams from as far away as Arizona and California.

The entry field is stacked with over 15 teams that have won the event in the sixties, seventies, nineties and in recent years. Taisto Heinonen, one of the most decorated stage rallyists in Canada, tops the entry list. Competitors for the 2008 Alcan 5000 are also well represented, mostly by factory teams. The oldest car entered at present is a 1971 Alfa Romeo that also made an appearance at Totem last year.

This year all cars are required to be part of a team entry. This was optional last year and the Sirius crew founded the Eis Munky Rally Team, which is being represented again by TSD veterans Gil Stuart and Chris Peake. The 07 Eis Munkys finished in last place as a team, plagued by mechanical problems, but with new rules and a new line up, the 08 Eis Munkys could have a shot at the Savoia Aero Team Prize.

The Sirius Rally Team will be represented at TBird by Jennifer, who will be checkpointing in the Rex. Gord will be with the Rocket crew at Perce-Neige. Thunderbird was the first rally for Jennifer and August as a team in 2005; Gord and Onur ran in 2006 with no heater as the first rally for the Rocket Legacy. The organizers kindly moved the event this year to accommodate Alcan teams, so Thunderbird will be a great snowy warm up event for the Alcan adventure that starts next weekend!

‘Munky’ Business (Updated)

As requested, more ‘Eis Munky Rally Team’ decals are now available. These popular decals are full colour and measure 22cmx30cm. They are 15$ each or 2/25$; the funds generated from the decals will help support our Alcan team. Email or Paypal siriusrally@telus.net to order.

Eis Munky gear is also available HERE, and a brand new Sirius Rally logo will be unveiled soon.

Winner and Vintage Rallyist Weighs in on Thunderbird 2007

In true style and with the spirit and love of rallying that makes us all fanatics about the sport, Satch Carlson won the event in his 1969 Saab Sonett II V4, and penned a letter summarizing his Thunderbird win and many years of rally:

Hey, fellow rally loons! I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you all again for the support you showed to Russ Kraushaar and me – and the little red Saab Sonett. Over the years I have been in many rallies where the competition was fierce and the attitudes unfriendly; Thunderbird, however, seems to exemplify all the values of sportsmanship that are supposed to underlie all our efforts. It was amazing to me to feel that the entire field was pulling for us, especially after our mechanical mishaps on Saturday; instead of depleting the world’s supply of Kokanee in the warm, cozy bar, our friends and competitors were vying with each other to see who could round up the tools and hardware we needed to cobble together our rear suspension!

It may have sounded trite or corny when I said that this win meant more to me than anything else I’ve done since I started rallying in. . . um. . . sometime in the early 1970s, actually-but it’s true. And the reason I felt so good about the weekend was that I truly felt that we were among close friends, where victory is not nearly as important as the spirit of camaraderie and competition.

So thank you again for your support of Team AFRICA. Though to tell you the truth, this year we were more than a little envious of those terrific Eis Munky T-shirts!

See you next year in deeper snow,
Satch Carlson, Spiritual Advisor
Team AFRICA

Thunderbird Rally 02.17.2007

The Eis Munky Rally Team was born! Sirius Racing members joined rallyists from BC and WA to compete in the 50th annual Thunderbird Rally. Gord and Jennifer, in the Rocket Legacy, were one of the calculator class entries for this team, which proudly sported an entry from all the competition classes, and the best tshirts. They made a run at the Savoia Aero Team Prize on Feb 16-18, 2007, but due to 2 DNFs the Eis Munkys were the last place team.

Gord & Jennifer brought up the rear of the Eis Munky entries that finished the rally in 35th overall and 12th in calculator class. I have always despised math and this was a very intense and math heavy TSD event. We got lost (briefly) for a few times, but for my first real TSD codriving effort I think we did well.

Details here

TEAM MEMBERS & PRECIS:
Peter & Timothy Ryce – 1988 Mazda 323 GTX (unlimited) second overall!!! Thanks for the advice and the sealegs….

Gil Stuart & Brian Carriere – 1967 Volvo 123GT (historic) the oldest car in the rally… Brian C is a huge lover of rally schwag and helped get the team, logo and tshirts up and running.

Stephen Ban & Chris Peake – 2003 Subaru WRX Wagon (calculator) big off on Twig Creek but managed to get back on time and finish in 25th overall; 7th in calculator class.

Rob & Lucille Anderson – 2006 Subaru STI (novice) Marsh Lake Rocks – 2 tires = DNF + 4 new $$$ tires, but they still finished Sunday just for fun.

Alan & Emma Perry – 1997 Audi A4 (paper) DNF b/c of ailing suspension; Alan was great with advice for getting to DooWops.

We had a great time with everyone on the team, and hope the Eis Munkys will continue next year while we are @ Alcan.